Flight data object realization with graph database

ABSTRACT

A method for flight data object realization includes storing a graph database that defines nodes populated with properties, receiving relationships among data items stored in data stores, transforming the relationships into edges in the graph database, receiving a query to create the flight data object, accessing the graph database, extracting particular properties from the graph database in response to the query, fetching from the data stores particular data items in response to the particular properties, generating the flight data object with the particular data items, creating a visual presentation of the flight data object, and presenting the flight data object.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The disclosure relates generally to organizing flight data, and inparticular, to flight data object realization with a graph database.

BACKGROUND

Current flight data exchanges are not consistent across aviation-relatedsystems. Data related to flights is physically scattered and resides inmultiple different heterogeneous sources (operational, maintenance,customer, etc.). The scattered and heterogeneous nature of the datamakes searching for and locating specific data tedious. For example,block chain methods could be used for organizing the flight data.However, the block chain methods involve a complete overhaul of theexisting data store architectures into a uniform organization that wouldinvolve a long and cumbersome process.

Accordingly, those skilled in the art continue with research anddevelopment efforts in the field of organizing flight data into areadily searchable format.

SUMMARY

A method for flight data object realization is provided herein. Themethod includes storing in a first computer a graph database thatdefines a plurality of nodes populated with a plurality of properties,receiving at the first computer a plurality of relationships among aplurality of data items stored in a plurality of data stores external tothe first computer, and transforming the plurality of relationships intoa plurality of edges in the graph database. The plurality of edges linksthe plurality of nodes. The method includes receiving at a secondcomputer a query to create the flight data object. The query defines oneor more particular relationships among the plurality of relationships toinclude in the flight data object. The method further includes accessingthe graph database at the second computer, extracting with the secondcomputer one or more particular properties among the plurality ofproperties from the graph database in response to the query, fetching tothe second computer from the plurality of data stores one or moreparticular data items among the plurality of data items in response tothe one or more particular properties, generating the flight data objectwith the one or more particular data items, creating a visualpresentation of the flight data object, and presenting the flight dataobject from an output device.

In one or more embodiments of the method, plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of identification values, one or more particularidentification values among the plurality of identification values areextracted from the graph database in response to the query, and the oneor more particular data items are fetched from the plurality of datastores in further response to the one or more particular identificationvalues.

In one or more embodiments of the method, the plurality ofidentification values includes an airline value, an aircraft value, anairport value, a runway value, an airspace value, a flight value, a fuelvalue, a part value, a route value, a crew value, an airline employeevalue, a weather data value, a system-wide information management value,and an automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast value.

In one or more embodiments of the method, the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of location databases, one or more particularlocation databases among the plurality of location databases areextracted from the graph database in response to the query, and the oneor more particular data items are fetched from the plurality of datastores in further response to the one or more particular locationdatabases.

In one or more embodiments of the method, the plurality of locationdatabases includes an airline database, a federal aviationadministration database, a weather database, an aircraft database, anairport database, an airspace database, a flights database, a fueldatabase, a parts database, a routes database, an employee database, anda crew database.

In one or more embodiments of the method, the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of status values, one or more particular statusvalues among the plurality of status values are extracted from the graphdatabase in response to the query, and the one or more particular dataitems are fetched from the plurality of data stores in further responseto the one or more particular status values.

In one or more embodiments of the method, the plurality of status valuesincludes an up status and a down status.

In one or more embodiments of the method, the plurality of edgesincludes a plurality of use links, a plurality of location links, aplurality of content links, a plurality of data type links, and aplurality of derived-from links.

In one or more embodiments of the method, a plurality of architecturesof the plurality of data stores is retained unaltered while the graphdatabase is created.

A system is provided herein. The system includes a first computer, asecond computer, and an output device. The first computer is configuredto store a graph database that defines a plurality of nodes populatedwith a plurality of properties, receive a plurality of relationshipsamong a plurality of data items stored in a plurality of data storesexternal to the first computer, and transform the plurality ofrelationships into a plurality of edges in the graph database. Theplurality of edges links the plurality of nodes. The second computer isin communication with the first computer and the plurality of datastores. The second computer is configured to receive a query to create aflight data object. The query defines one or more particularrelationships among the plurality of relationships to include in theflight data object, The second computer is configured to access thegraph database, extract one or more particular properties among theplurality of properties from the graph database in response to thequery, fetch from the plurality of data stores one or more particulardata items among the plurality of data items in response to the one ormore particular properties, generate the flight data object with the oneor more particular data items, and create a visual presentation of theflight data object. The output device is configured to present thevisual presentation.

In one or more embodiments of the system, the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of identification values, one or more particularidentification values among the plurality of identification values areextracted from the graph database in response to the query, and the oneor more particular data items are fetched from the plurality of datastores in further response to the one or more particular identificationvalues.

In one or more embodiments of the system, the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of location databases, one or more particularlocation databases among the plurality of location databases areextracted from the graph database in response to the query, and the oneor more particular data items are fetched from the plurality of datastores in further response to the one or more particular locationdatabases.

In one or more embodiments of the system, the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of status values, one or more particular statusvalues among the plurality of status values are extracted from the graphdatabase in response to the query, and the one or more particular dataitems are fetched from the plurality of data stores in further responseto the one or more particular status values.

In one or more embodiments of the system, the plurality of edgesincludes a plurality of use links, a plurality of location links, aplurality of content links, a plurality of data type links, and aplurality of derived-from links.

In one or more embodiments of the system, a plurality of architecturesof the plurality of data stores is retained unaltered while the graphdatabase is created.

A non-transitory computer readable storage media containing processorexecutable instructions is provided herein. The processor executableinstructions cause a processor to perform the steps of storing in afirst computer a graph database that defines a plurality of nodespopulated with a plurality of properties, receiving at the firstcomputer a plurality of relationships among a plurality of data itemsstored in a plurality of data stores external to the first computer, andtransforming the plurality of relationships into a plurality of edges inthe graph database. The plurality of edges links the plurality of nodes.The instructions perform the steps of receiving at a second computer aquery to create the flight data object. The query defines one or moreparticular relationships among the plurality of relationships to includein the flight data object. The instructions perform the steps ofaccessing the graph database at the second computer, extracting with thesecond computer one or more particular properties among the plurality ofproperties from the graph database in response to the query, fetching tothe second computer from the plurality of data stores one or moreparticular data items among the plurality of data items in response tothe one or more particular properties, generating the flight data objectwith the one or more particular data items, and creating a visualpresentation of the flight data object presentable from an outputdevice.

In one or more embodiments of the non-transitory computer readablestorage media, the plurality of properties includes a plurality ofidentification values, one or more particular identification valuesamong the plurality of identification values are extracted from thegraph database in response to the query, and the one or more particulardata items are fetched from the plurality of data stores in furtherresponse to the one or more particular identification values.

In one or more embodiments of the non-transitory computer readablestorage media, the plurality of properties includes a plurality oflocation databases, one or more particular location databases among theplurality of location databases are extracted from the graph database inresponse to the query, and the one or more particular data items arefetched from the plurality of data stores in further response to the oneor more particular location databases.

In one or more embodiments of the non-transitory computer readablestorage media, the plurality of properties includes a plurality ofstatus values, one or more particular status values among the pluralityof status values are extracted from the graph database in response tothe query, and the one or more particular data items are fetched fromthe plurality of data stores in further response to the one or moreparticular status values.

In one or more embodiments of the non-transitory computer readablestorage media, the plurality of edges includes a plurality of use links,a plurality of location links, a plurality of content links, a pluralityof data type links, and a plurality of derived-from links.

The above features and advantages, and other features and advantages ofthe present disclosure are readily apparent from the following detaileddescription of the best modes for carrying out the disclosure when takenin connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an environment for realization offlight data objects in accordance with one or more exemplaryembodiments.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a graph database in accordance with oneor more exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an example node in the graph databasein accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a method for generating a flight data objectin accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram for identifying existing data stores inaccordance with one or more exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram for creating the graph database in accordancewith one or more exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram for generating the flight data object inresponse to a query in accordance with one or more exemplaryembodiments.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the computers in accordance with one ormore exemplary embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments of the disclosure generally provide a system andmethod for realizing flight data objects (FDO) using data accumulatedfrom a variety of non-uniform data stores into a non-relational graphdatabase. The system and/or method stores relationship information inthe graph database while retaining an architecture of existingrelational databases. Using the technique, existing data stores remainunmodified. Data management is achieved by identifying the data storesand saving relationships between them in a graph database thus helpingin easily locating the data while creating the flight data objects. Theexisting data stores serve as nodes and/or entities in the graphdatabase architecture. The nodes/entities are connected usingrelationships (e.g., edges) thus facilitating faster traversal betweendata stores to locate a particular dataset. A query into the graphdatabase identifies particular properties regarding where the requesteddata is located. The requested data may be fetched from the data storesand used to generate the flight data object. A visual presentation ofthe flight data object is created and presented on one or more outputdevices, such as a display and/or a printer.

The flight data objects facilitate capturing, sharing, and streamliningup-to-date information associated with a flight. By saving the existingdatabase architecture of the organization in a non-relational graphdatabase, a single and meaningful view of the data stores is achievedwith an overall view of dependencies across multiple databases. Silosbetween different data stores may also be avoided.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a schematic diagram of an example implementationof an environment 90 for realization of flight data objects is shown inaccordance with one or more exemplary embodiments. The environment 90includes multiple data stores 92 a-92 n and a system 100. The datastores 92 a-92 n have respective architectures 94 a-94 n for storingdata items 96 a-96 n and relationships 98 a-98 n among the data items 96a-96 n. The system 100 includes a network 102, a first computer 110, asecond computer 112, an input device 114, an output device 116, and acommunication link 120. The output device 116 presented a visualpresentation 118 that includes a flight data object 122.

The data stores 92 a-92 n implement a variety of data storage systems.The data stores 92 a-92 n may be physically located in multiplefacilities external to the system 100. In various embodiments, the datastores 92 a-92 n are heterogenous relative to each other with varyingarchitectures 94 a-94 n. The data stores 92 a-92 n contain the dataitems 96 a-96 n. The data items 96 a-96 n may include information suchas operational data, maintenance data, customer data, location data, andthe like. The data items 96 a-96 n are used to populate the flight dataobjects 122. The relationships 98 a-98 n define how the data items 96a-96 n are related to each other. For example, the maintenance data maybe related to airport location data to indicate where specificmaintenance personal and specific maintenance equipment are located.

The system 100 implements a network of computers in communication withthe data stores 92 a-92 n through the network 102. Nodes of the networkcommunicate with each other through the communication link 120. Thefirst computer 110 of the system 100 is configured to store, or allocatememory space to store a graph database. The graph database generallydefines multiple nodes populated with multiple properties. The firstcomputer 110 receives the relationships 98 a-98 n among the data items96 a-96 n stored in the data stores 92 a-92 n, and transform therelationship 98 a-98 n into multiple edges in the graph database. Theedges link the nodes of the graph database. The second computer 112 ofthe system 100 is configured to receive the query 128 from the inputdevice 114 to create the flight data object 122. The query 128 definesone or more particular relationships to include in the flight dataobject 122. The second computer 112 may access the graph database,extract one or more particular properties from the graph database inresponse to the query 128, fetch from the data stores 92 a-92 n one ormore particular data items (e.g., 96 a) in response to the particularproperties, generate the flight data object 122 with the particular dataitem 96 a, and create the visual presentation 118 of the flight dataobject 122. The output device 116 is configured to present the visualpresentation 118 to people (e.g., the person who submitted the query128).

The network 102 implements a wide-area communication network. Thenetwork 102 is operational to transfer information from the system 100to the data stores 92 a-92 n, and from the data stores 92 a-92 n to thesystem 100. The network 102 may include one or more wired networksand/or one or more wireless networks. In various embodiments, thenetwork 102 may include the Internet, a wide area network, a local areanetwork, and the like.

The input device 114 implements a human machine interface device. Theinput device 114 is operational to receive a query request from a person(or user). Each request is transferred as a query 128 via thecommunication link 120 to the second computer 112.

The output device 116 implements a display 124, a printer 126, and/orsimilar device capable of rendering the flight data object 122 in ahuman-readable format. The output device 116 is in communication withthe second computer 112 via the communication link 120. The flight dataobject 122 is received by the output device 116 through thecommunication link 120.

The communication link 120 implements a local communication network. Thecommunication link 120 is operational to transfer information among thefirst computer 110, the second computer 112, the input device 114, andthe output device 116. In various embodiments, the communication link120 may be a local area network, an Ethernet network, a set ofpoint-to-point networks, a wireless network, or the like.

Referring to FIG. 2 , a schematic diagram of an example implementationof a graph database 140 is shown in accordance with one or moreexemplary embodiments. The graph database 140 generally includesmultiple nodes 142 a-142 n related to each other by multiple edges 146a-146 n. The nodes 142 a-142 n represent entities or instances such as aperson, a city, an employee, a customer, and the like. The nodes 142a-142 n may also be referred to as vertices. The edges 146 a-146 n mapthe relationships between the entities/instances. Properties 144 a-144 nare associated with the corresponding nodes 142 a-142 n. The flight dataobject concept provides a streamlined view of the connections betweenmultiple different products. databases, and applications, both internaland external.

Referring to FIG. 3 , a schematic diagram of an example implementationof a particular node (e.g., 142 a) in the graph database 140 is shown inaccordance with one or more exemplary embodiments. The particular node142 a may be representative of the nodes 142 b-142 n (see FIG. 2 ). Theparticular node 142 a may have an identification value 150, a locationdatabase 152, and a status value 154.

The identification value 150 may define a type of entity of theparticular node 142 a. The identification value 150 may correspond toone among multiple identification values 150 a-150 o. The identificationvalues 150 may include, but are not limited to, a particularidentification value 150 a, an airline value 150 b, an aircraft value150 c, an airport value 150 d, a runway value 150 e, an airspace value150 f, a flight value 150 g, a fuel value 150 h, a part value 150 i, aroute value 150 j, a crew value 150 k, an airline employee value 150 l,a weather data value 150 m, a system-wide information management value150 n, and an automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast value 150 o.Other identification values 150 may be implemented to meet the designcriteria of a particular system.

The location database 152 may define a type of database located at theparticular node 142 a. The location database 152 may include, but arenot limited to, a particular location database 152 a, an airlinedatabase 152 b, a federal aviation administration database 152 c, aweather database 152 d, an aircraft database 152 e, an airport database152 f, an airspace database 152 g, a flights database 152 h, a fueldatabase 152 i, a parts database 152 j, a routes database 152 k, anemployee database 152 l, and a crew database 152 m. Other locationdatabases 152 may be implemented to meet the design criteria of aparticular system.

The status value 154 defines a current status, condition, or mode of theparticular node 142 a. The status value 154 may include, but is notlimited to, a particular status value 154 a, an up status 154 b, and adown status 154 c. Other status values 154 may be implemented to meetthe design criteria of a particular system.

The edge 146 a defines a relationship between the particular node 142 aand a connected node 142 b-142 n (see FIG. 2 ). The edge 146 a mayinclude one among multiple links 160 a-160 f, and a corresponding edgedata value 162. The links may include, but are not limited to a use link160 a, a location link 160 b, a content link 160 c, a data type link 160d, a derived-from link 160 e, and a part effectiveness link 160 f. Otherlinks may be implemented to meet the design criteria of a particularsystem.

Referring to FIG. 4 , a flow diagram of an example method 200 forgenerating a flight data object 122 is shown in accordance with one ormore exemplary embodiments. The method (or process) 200 may be carriedout by the system 100 with some manual operations. The method 200includes steps 210-260, as illustrated.

In the step 210, the existing data stores 92 a-92 n in the organizationmay be manually identified and the relationships between the data stores92 a-92 n may be defined. The identification is a one-time process andonly changes whenever an additional data store 92 a-92 n is added to theenvironment 90. In various embodiments, a spreadsheet file may be usedto document the data stores 92 a-92 n and the relationshipstherebetween.

A graph database (e.g., graph database 140) may be created in the step230. From a web-based administration interface for graph database 140,the spreadsheet file created in the step 210 may be located and thecontents thereof are automatically imported into the graph database 140with nodes and relationship information. The individual data stores 92a-92 n may be represented in the graph database 140 as the nodes 142a-142 n. The nodes 142 a-142 n may include the identification values150, the location databases 152, and the status values 154. Therelationships among the data stores 92 a-92 n identified in the step 210may form the edges 146 a-146 n that link the nodes 142 a-142 n.

In the step 260, the system 100 may generate a flight data object 122based on a query 128 entered by an operator. To create the flight dataobject 122, the operator queries the graph database 140 forrelationships, use a particular identification value 150 a and aparticular location database 152 a to fetch actual data. The query 128generally depends on the entity creating the flight data object 122.

Upon receipt of the query 128, the system 100 (e.g., the second computer112) identifies the datasets appropriate for creation of the flight dataobject 122. The datasets in the graph database 140 are searched, and thelocation of the one or more data stores 92 a-92 n where the details arestored is returned. Once the appropriate data stores 92 a-92 n areknown, the system 100 may access the data stores 92 a-92 n for therequested information. After the requested information is received, thesystem 100 uses the received information to assemble the flight dataobject 122. The flight data object 122 may subsequently be presented inthe visual presentation 118 by the output device 116.

Referring to FIG. 5 , a flow diagram of an example implementation of thestep 210 for identifying existing data stores 92 a-92 n is shown inaccordance with one or more exemplary embodiments. The step 210 may beperformed manually. The step (or process) 210 includes steps 212 to 218,as illustrated. The sequence of steps is shown as a representativeexample. Other step orders may be implemented to meet the criteria of aparticular application.

In the step 212, the data stores 92 a-92 n may be searched to determinewhich are considered to be within the environment 90. The data items 96a-96 n and the relationships 98 a-98 n of the data stores 92 a-92 n areidentified in the step 214. In the step 216 the data items 96 a-96 n andthe relationships 98 a-98 n are exported from the data stores 92 a-92 n.The data items 96 a-96 n and the relationships 98 a-98 n are documentsand saved in a file in the step 218.

Referring to FIG. 6 , a flow diagram of an example implementation of thestep 230 for creating the graph database 140 is shown in accordance withone or more exemplary embodiments. The step (or process) 230 may beimplemented by the system 100. The step 230 includes steps 232 to 250,as illustrated. The sequence of steps is shown as a representativeexample. Other step orders may be implemented to meet the criteria of aparticular application.

In the step 232, the data stored in the file created in the step 218(see FIG. 5 ) may be read and stored in a graph database 140. The system100 (e.g., the first computer 110) may receive the relationships 98 a-98n among the data items 96 a-96 n held externally in the data stores 92a-92 n in the step 234. The system 100 transforms the relationships 98a-98 n into the edges 146 a-146 n in the graph database 140 in the step236.

In the step 238, a check is performed by the first computer 110 toverify that the relationships 98 a-98 n to be used to link the nodes 142a-142 n in the graph database 140 are present. If one or morerelationships 98 a-98 n are missing, the system 100 may return to thestep 210 to document the missing relationships 98 a-98 n in the step240. Once the full relationships 98 a-98 n are present, a check may beperformed in the step 242 to determine if the data items 96 a-96 n to beused to populate the graph database 140 are in proper format. Ifimproperly formatted data items 96 a-96 n are found during the check,the system 100 may return to the step 210 to obtain properly formattedinformation in the step 244.

Once the data items 96 a-96 n are present per the step 242, the system100 parses the data items 96 a-96 n and the relationships 98 a-98 n fromthe spreadsheets and converts the information into a predeterminedformat (e.g., the identification values 150, the location databases 152,and the status values 154) of the graph database 140 in the step 246. Inthe step 248, the graph database 140 is stored in the first computer110. A copy of the graph database 140 may subsequently be transferredfrom the first computer 110 to the second computer 112 in the step 250.

Referring to FIG. 7 , a flow diagram of an example implementation of thestep 260 for generating a flight data object 122 is shown in accordancewith one or more exemplary embodiments. The step (or process) 260 may beimplemented by the system 100. The step 260 includes steps 262 to 292,as illustrated. The sequence of steps is shown as a representativeexample. Other step orders may be implemented to meet the criteria of aparticular application.

In the step 262, the query 128 to create the flight data object 122 maybe received at the second computer 112 from the input device 114. Thequery 128 generally defines one or more particular relationships (e.g.,98 a) among the relationships 98 a-98 n to include in the flight dataobject 122. The second computer 112 may access the graph database 140stored within in response to receiving the query 128 in the step 264. Acheck may be performed in the step 266 to verify that the graph database140 is present and in proper format. If the graph database 140 is absentor incorrect, the system 100 may return to the step 230 in the step 268to complete the graph database 140.

If the graph database 140 is present and correct in the step 266, thesecond computer 112 may extract one or more particular properties (e.g.,144 a) among the properties 144 a-144 n (see FIG. 2 ) from the graphdatabase 140 in response to the query 128 in the step 270. The secondcomputer 112 may identify stakeholders in the step 272, and identifybusiness logic in the step 274 based on the query 128.

In the step 276, a search may be formed in the graph database 140 fordata relevant to the query 128. If found, the search may return locationdetails and status of the data stores 92 a-92 n in the step 278. Knowingthe data store locations and statuses, the second computer 112 mayconnect to the appropriate data stores 92 a-92 n in the step 280. Aquery of the connected data stores 92 a-92 n is performed in the step282 to fetching the particular data items 96 a among the data items 96a-96 n to the second computer 112 in response to the one or moreparticular properties 144 a.

In the step 284, the second computer 112 may generate the requestedflight data object 122 using the particular data items 96 a receivedfrom the data stores 92 a-92 n. If appropriate, the second computer 112may update the flight data object 122 with additional data from othersources in the step 286. A visual presentation 118 of the flight dataobject 122 is generated in the step 288. The visual presentation 118 maybe presented from the output device 116 in the step 292.

If the search in the step 276 does not find the location details and/orthe status of the data stores 92 a-92 n is down, the second computer 112may search in alternate sources for the requested data items 96 a-96 nin the step 292. Thereafter, the data items 96 a-96 n may be used togenerate the flight data object 122 in the step 284. The visualpresentation 118 is created in the step 288, then presented in the step290. After the visual presentation 118 with the requested flight dataobject 122 is displayed and/or printed, the second computer 112 mayreturn to the step 262 and wait to receive a new query 128 for a newflight data object 122.

Referring to FIG. 8 , a schematic diagram of an example implementationof the first computer 110 and the second computer 112 is shown inaccordance with one or more exemplary embodiments. The first computer110 and the second computer 112 may include one or more processors 322,a non-transitory storage medium 324 and another storage medium 326. Theprocessors 322 may communicate bi-directionally on the communicationlink 120. The processors 322 of the first computer 110 may alsocommunicate bi-directionally via the network 102.

The non-transitory storage medium 324 may hold one or more instructions328 (or software programs) executed by the processors 322 to perform themethod 230 (first computer 110) and the method 260 (second computer112). The graph database 140 may be stored in the non-transitory storagemedium 324, as illustrated, and/or in the storage medium 326. The flightdata object 122 generally reside in the storage medium 326.

The instructions 328 in the first computer 110 may be read and executedby the processors 322 to implement the process of assembling the graphdatabase 140. The instructions 328 in the second computer 112 may beread and executed by the processors 322 to implement the process ofgenerating the visual presentation 118 with the flight data object 122based on the query 128.

The flight data objects 122 provide tangible benefits to aviationcommunities in terms of interoperability, harmonization, and datamanagement. The flight data objects 122 provide single, meaningful viewof the diverse data stores 92 a-92 n. The meaningful views allow forimpact analysis, dependency identifications, avoid silos among differentdata repositories, link the data stores 92 a-92 n, provides a commonpoint of reference, and provides data consistency across organizations.

The system 100 is scalable in the environment 90 regardless of the size,number and type of data stores 92 a-92 n. By forming a relationshipgraph of the existing data stores 92 a-92 n, a single and meaningfulview of the data stores 92 a-92 n is available. Thus, the system 100helps make the process of locating and identifying the flight data afaster process. The system 100 may be used by aviation relatedorganizations to realize the concept of flight data object in a shortspan of time without making changes to existing database architecture.The system 100 may also serve as an add-on for organizations that arealready using concepts like flight-key, by enhancing the performance bymeans of faster data searches.

This disclosure is susceptible of embodiments in many different forms.Representative embodiments of the disclosure are shown in the drawingsand will herein be described in detail with the understanding that theseembodiments are provided as an exemplification of the disclosedprinciples, not limitations of the broad aspects of the disclosure. Tothat extent, elements and limitations that are described, for example,in the Abstract, Background, Summary, and Detailed Description sections,but not explicitly set forth in the claims, should not be incorporatedinto the claims, singly or collectively, by implication, inference orotherwise.

For purposes of the present detailed description, unless specificallydisclaimed, the singular includes the plural and vice versa. The words“and” and “or” shall be both conjunctive and disjunctive. The words“any” and “all” shall both mean “any and all”, and the words“including,” “containing,” “comprising,” “having,” and the like shalleach mean “including without limitation.” Moreover, words ofapproximation such as “about,” “almost,” “substantially,”“approximately,” and “generally,” may be used herein in the sense of“at, near, or nearly at,” or “within 0-5% of,” or “within acceptablemanufacturing tolerances,” or other logical combinations thereof.Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference numbers refer to likecomponents.

The detailed description and the drawings or FIGS. are supportive anddescriptive of the disclosure, but the scope of the disclosure isdefined solely by the claims. While some of the best modes and otherembodiments for carrying out the claimed disclosure have been describedin detail, various alternative designs and embodiments exist forpracticing the disclosure defined in the appended claims. Furthermore,the embodiments shown in the drawings or the characteristics of variousembodiments mentioned in the present description are not necessarily tobe understood as embodiments independent of each other. Rather, it ispossible that each of the characteristics described in one of theexamples of an embodiment may be combined with one or a plurality ofother desired characteristics from other embodiments, resulting in otherembodiments not described in words or by reference to the drawings.Accordingly, such other embodiments fall within the framework of thescope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for flight data object realizationcomprising: storing in a first computer a graph database that defines aplurality of nodes populated with a plurality of properties; receivingat the first computer a plurality of relationships among a plurality ofdata items stored in a plurality of data stores external to the firstcomputer; transforming the plurality of relationships into a pluralityof edges in the graph database, wherein the plurality of edges links theplurality of nodes; receiving at a second computer a query to create theflight data object, wherein the query defines one or more particularrelationships among the plurality of relationships to include in theflight data object; accessing the graph database at the second computer;extracting with the second computer one or more particular propertiesamong the plurality of properties from the graph database in response tothe query; fetching to the second computer from the plurality of datastores one or more particular data items among the plurality of dataitems in response to the one or more particular properties; generatingthe flight data object with the one or more particular data items;creating a visual presentation of the flight data object; and presentingthe flight data object from an output device.
 2. The method according toclaim 1, wherein: the plurality of properties includes a plurality ofidentification values; one or more particular identification valuesamong the plurality of identification values are extracted from thegraph database in response to the query; and the one or more particulardata items are fetched from the plurality of data stores in furtherresponse to the one or more particular identification values.
 3. Themethod according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of identificationvalues includes an airline value, an aircraft value, an airport value, arunway value, an airspace value, a flight value, a fuel value, a partvalue, a route value, a crew value, an airline employee value, a weatherdata value, a system-wide information management value, and an automaticdependent surveillance-broadcast value.
 4. The method according to claim1, wherein: the plurality of properties includes a plurality of locationdatabases; one or more particular location databases among the pluralityof location databases are extracted from the graph database in responseto the query; and the one or more particular data items are fetched fromthe plurality of data stores in further response to the one or moreparticular location databases.
 5. The method according to claim 4,wherein the plurality of location databases includes an airlinedatabase, a federal aviation administration database, a weatherdatabase, an aircraft database, an airport database, an airspacedatabase, a flights database, a fuel database, a parts database, aroutes database, an employee database, and a crew database.
 6. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein: the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of status values; one or more particular statusvalues among the plurality of status values are extracted from the graphdatabase in response to the query; and the one or more particular dataitems are fetched from the plurality of data stores in further responseto the one or more particular status values.
 7. The method according toclaim 6, wherein the plurality of status values includes an up statusand a down status.
 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein theplurality of edges includes a plurality of use links, a plurality oflocation links, a plurality of content links, a plurality of data typelinks, and a plurality of derived-from links.
 9. The method according toclaim 1, wherein a plurality of architectures of the plurality of datastores is retained unaltered while the graph database is created.
 10. Asystem comprising: a first computer configured to: store a graphdatabase that defines a plurality of nodes populated with a plurality ofproperties; receive a plurality of relationships among a plurality ofdata items stored in a plurality of data stores external to the firstcomputer; and transform the plurality of relationships into a pluralityof edges in the graph database, wherein the plurality of edges links theplurality of nodes; a second computer in communication with the firstcomputer and the plurality of data stores, the second computer isconfigured to: receive a query to create a flight data object, whereinthe query defines one or more particular relationships among theplurality of relationships to include in the flight data object; accessthe graph database; extract one or more particular properties among theplurality of properties from the graph database in response to thequery; fetch from the plurality of data stores one or more particulardata items among the plurality of data items in response to the one ormore particular properties; generate the flight data object with the oneor more particular data items; and create a visual presentation of theflight data object; and an output device configured to present thevisual presentation.
 11. The system according to claim 10, wherein: theplurality of properties includes a plurality of identification values;one or more particular identification values among the plurality ofidentification values are extracted from the graph database in responseto the query; and the one or more particular data items are fetched fromthe plurality of data stores in further response to the one or moreparticular identification values.
 12. The system according to claim 10,wherein: the plurality of properties includes a plurality of locationdatabases; one or more particular location databases among the pluralityof location databases are extracted from the graph database in responseto the query; and the one or more particular data items are fetched fromthe plurality of data stores in further response to the one or moreparticular location databases.
 13. The system according to claim 10,wherein: the plurality of properties includes a plurality of statusvalues; one or more particular status values among the plurality ofstatus values are extracted from the graph database in response to thequery; and the one or more particular data items are fetched from theplurality of data stores in further response to the one or moreparticular status values.
 14. The system according to claim 10, whereinthe plurality of edges includes a plurality of use links, a plurality oflocation links, a plurality of content links, a plurality of data typelinks, and a plurality of derived-from links.
 15. The system accordingto claim 10, wherein a plurality of architectures of the plurality ofdata stores is retained unaltered while the graph database is created.16. A non-transitory computer readable storage media containingprocessor executable instructions that cause a processor to perform thesteps of: storing in a first computer a graph database that defines aplurality of nodes populated with a plurality of properties; receivingat the first computer a plurality of relationships among a plurality ofdata items stored in a plurality of data stores external to the firstcomputer; transforming the plurality of relationships into a pluralityof edges in the graph database, wherein the plurality of edges links theplurality of nodes; receiving at a second computer a query to create theflight data object, wherein the query defines one or more particularrelationships among the plurality of relationships to include in theflight data object; accessing the graph database at the second computer;extracting with the second computer one or more particular propertiesamong the plurality of properties from the graph database in response tothe query; fetching to the second computer from the plurality of datastores one or more particular data items among the plurality of dataitems in response to the one or more particular properties; generatingthe flight data object with the one or more particular data items; andcreating a visual presentation of the flight data object presentablefrom an output device.
 17. The non-transitory computer readable storagemedia according to claim 16, wherein: the plurality of propertiesincludes a plurality of identification values; one or more particularidentification values among the plurality of identification values areextracted from the graph database in response to the query; and the oneor more particular data items are fetched from the plurality of datastores in further response to the one or more particular identificationvalues.
 18. The non-transitory computer readable storage media accordingto claim 16, wherein: the plurality of properties includes a pluralityof location databases; one or more particular location databases amongthe plurality of location databases are extracted from the graphdatabase in response to the query; and the one or more particular dataitems are fetched from the plurality of data stores in further responseto the one or more particular location databases.
 19. The non-transitorycomputer readable storage media according to claim 16, wherein: theplurality of properties includes a plurality of status values; one ormore particular status values among the plurality of status values areextracted from the graph database in response to the query; and the oneor more particular data items are fetched from the plurality of datastores in further response to the one or more particular status values.20. The non-transitory computer readable storage media according toclaim 16, wherein the plurality of edges includes a plurality of uselinks, a plurality of location links, a plurality of content links, aplurality of data type links, and a plurality of derived-from links.